The population of Afghanistan is currently slightly over thirty million. Pashtuns are the predominant ethnic group in Afghanistan, comprising forty-two percent of the population. Other ethnic groups include the Tajiks (twenty-seven percent), Hazaras (nine percent), Uzbeks (nine percent) and other minority groups such as the Aimak, Turkmen and Baluch. Dari is the official language of the government. However, many other languages are spoken in Afghanistan, including Pashtu, Hazaragi, Uzbek, and Turkmen. Religiously, Afghanistan is over ninety-nine percent Muslim, with an estimated eighty percent Sunni Muslims and an estimated nineteen percent Shiite Muslims.

Today, the United Nations and international NGOs provide essential development and support. Afghanistan?s infrastructure, such as roads, electricity, and water sanitation, is in poor condition. Medical care is very lacking, especially in rural areas. This results in a national life expectancy of only forty-five years. Furthermore, the educational system is struggling to recover after decades of war; only fifty percent of men are literate and only about twenty percent of women. Cultivation of poppies also remains a significant concern as Afghanistan is the world?s largest producer of opium. Although there has been a great deal of reconstruction in the past three years, much, much more is needed in order to alleviate poverty, provide adequate health care, create economic opportunities, and educate the next generation.